Guwahati: Assam’s Minister for Cultural Affairs, Bimal Borah, has launched a blistering attack on Sivasagar MLA and Raijor Dal leader Akhil Gogoi, accusing him of political opportunism and attempting to politicize the death of music icon Zubeen Garg.
In a strongly worded Facebook post written in Assamese and framed as a personal letter titled “O Akhil…”, Borah revisited his past association with Gogoi, alleging a long pattern of ideological inconsistency. “When I was the General Secretary of J.B. College (1995), you were contesting for the Magazine Editor post of Cotton College Students’ Union. You had sought my help to gain AASU’s support,” Borah wrote, claiming that he had personally appealed to then AASU leader Dr. Samujjal Bhattacharjya to back Gogoi.
The minister accused Gogoi of betraying the ideals of the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) by gradually aligning himself with Leftist politics. “Although you had already begun leaning towards the other side, AASU supported you in good faith. However, today you appear restless in your eagerness to win the Congress’s favour,” Borah remarked.
Borah’s post expanded into a wider critique of the Congress party, which he held responsible for multiple historical failures — from the Partition of India in 1947 and the 1962 Chinese aggression to the influx of migrants under the “Grow More Food” scheme. He also referenced the Assam Agitation, recalling that “855 lives were lost” as Assamese families suffered during the movement.
Accusing the Congress of rampant corruption between 2001 and 2015, Borah claimed that the party “turned government jobs into commodities and weakened the state’s administrative integrity.” He further alleged that the Congress had opposed conferring the Bharat Ratna on Dr. Bhupen Hazarika and resisted major initiatives such as Assam’s semiconductor manufacturing project.
The minister then turned to Gogoi’s recent comments on Zubeen Garg’s death, condemning what he described as attempts to politicize the tragedy. “If you truly love Assam, end your misplaced sympathies and stop playing politics over Zubeen Garg’s passing,” Borah wrote, adding poignantly, “Zubeen himself wrote — ‘I will not do politics, my friend.’”
Concluding his post, Borah cautioned Gogoi not to underestimate public intelligence. “Do not think there is a lack of educated and conscious citizens in Assam. The people of this state are fully capable of understanding your actions,” he said, reaffirming his view that the Assamese public sees through what he called “hypocrisy disguised as activism.”
